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| The Entertainment Review |
| Genre: Puzzle Developer: Idea Factory Publisher: Conspiracy Entertainment |
There are some games on the market today that take a lot of the Japanese culture and create an out of this world title that every gamer
drools over, and then there is “Octomania” which makes gamers drool for a different reason. “Octomania” is a hyperactive game
featuring cute little anime characters, a storyline that revolves around Japanese friend octopus and horribly terrible but horribly funny
voiceovers. Also, the overall puzzle game play is quirky and is just different enough to engage fans of the puzzle genre; however it lacks
the addictive qualities that many of the truly great puzzles games have. The one factor that makes this game worthwhile is the cast of
colorful and energetic characters and the overall presentation of the game with its Japanese wackiness.
The object of the game is fairly simple and straight-forward. Players need to clear octopi from the board presented to them. The play
area is divided into squares and players take control of a four by four cursor. When the cursor is placed over the octopi they can be
rotated either clockwise or counterclockwise. Also, there are grills scattered around the board. The goal is to maneuver the minimum
amount of octopi onto the grill and begin frying them. This will create a chain reaction that will remove them from the playing field. While
they are cooking, more octopi can be added to the chain to create large combos.
The early stages of the game are quite simple but they quickly become more difficult, making players think fast before the screen fills up
with octopi and the game is over. Most of the modes in “Octomania” put the player against either a human players or an AI. As players
create chains, sea urchins are sent over to the opponents side, block their opponents playing field and making it difficult to clear the
board. Urchins can be added to a chain but cannot be thrown onto a grill on their own. Once a player reaches a combo of at least 10
octopi, the character will perform an interesting attack sequence.
The game has eleven different character to choose from, several of which need to be unlocked through playing the game. Depending
on the character that is chosen the storyline will change. The storyline as a whole is fairly ridiculous and really doesn’t make much
sense, but that is a key element to a fun game. It almost seems as though random people were chosen to record the voices of the
deformed characters in the game. Also, the character chosen will determine the special attacks that can be performed.
As players progress through the game a diamond meter will fill up resulting in a gem thrown onto the playing field. When the diamond
is added to a chain, a variety of helpful attacks are unleashed. During play, character will dance around the top of the screen, making
comments and throwing attacks at each other.
“Octomania” is very pleasing to the eyes with its beautiful hand-drawn look. The character designs vary dramatically, but can all still be
considered cute, in that weird anime way. The backgrounds are also pretty amazing, except players don’t’ have a whole lot of time to
look at them during the course of the game unless they are watching a friend play. However, the music gets to be very repetitive.
There are also a variety of multiplayer modes that allow players to go head-to-head or have up to four players pair up and compete
cooperatively. Players can also recruit their friends to join them through the Story Mode. The cooperative modes are quite interesting
and can get to be very crowded and very confusing at times. Also, players can play over the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection if they feel the
urge, but it will probably be unnecessary because it offers exactly what is already offered offline.
Overall, the game offers a lot of the elements gamers look for in a game, good graphics, challenging puzzles, multiplayer and even
online modes. The only problem with the game is that there are chances of the game becoming repetitive and multiplayer can get to be
quite difficult and confusing at times. As a puzzle game, “Octomania” is just original enough to be engaging and challenging to many
gamers. Because each character has their own story to play through and terrible voice track to laugh at, the game ensures that players
to play it over and over again. Also, with a $20 price tag on its head, there are very few games that can compete with its price compared
to what actually comes in the package.
For those that are serious about puzzle games and are looking for something that is new and challenging, “Octomania” is definitely a
game worth checking out. However, for those that have an issue with cute anime characters, bad voice acting and repetitious music,
this game should not be given a second glance.
drools over, and then there is “Octomania” which makes gamers drool for a different reason. “Octomania” is a hyperactive game
featuring cute little anime characters, a storyline that revolves around Japanese friend octopus and horribly terrible but horribly funny
voiceovers. Also, the overall puzzle game play is quirky and is just different enough to engage fans of the puzzle genre; however it lacks
the addictive qualities that many of the truly great puzzles games have. The one factor that makes this game worthwhile is the cast of
colorful and energetic characters and the overall presentation of the game with its Japanese wackiness.
The object of the game is fairly simple and straight-forward. Players need to clear octopi from the board presented to them. The play
area is divided into squares and players take control of a four by four cursor. When the cursor is placed over the octopi they can be
rotated either clockwise or counterclockwise. Also, there are grills scattered around the board. The goal is to maneuver the minimum
amount of octopi onto the grill and begin frying them. This will create a chain reaction that will remove them from the playing field. While
they are cooking, more octopi can be added to the chain to create large combos.
The early stages of the game are quite simple but they quickly become more difficult, making players think fast before the screen fills up
with octopi and the game is over. Most of the modes in “Octomania” put the player against either a human players or an AI. As players
create chains, sea urchins are sent over to the opponents side, block their opponents playing field and making it difficult to clear the
board. Urchins can be added to a chain but cannot be thrown onto a grill on their own. Once a player reaches a combo of at least 10
octopi, the character will perform an interesting attack sequence.
The game has eleven different character to choose from, several of which need to be unlocked through playing the game. Depending
on the character that is chosen the storyline will change. The storyline as a whole is fairly ridiculous and really doesn’t make much
sense, but that is a key element to a fun game. It almost seems as though random people were chosen to record the voices of the
deformed characters in the game. Also, the character chosen will determine the special attacks that can be performed.
As players progress through the game a diamond meter will fill up resulting in a gem thrown onto the playing field. When the diamond
is added to a chain, a variety of helpful attacks are unleashed. During play, character will dance around the top of the screen, making
comments and throwing attacks at each other.
“Octomania” is very pleasing to the eyes with its beautiful hand-drawn look. The character designs vary dramatically, but can all still be
considered cute, in that weird anime way. The backgrounds are also pretty amazing, except players don’t’ have a whole lot of time to
look at them during the course of the game unless they are watching a friend play. However, the music gets to be very repetitive.
There are also a variety of multiplayer modes that allow players to go head-to-head or have up to four players pair up and compete
cooperatively. Players can also recruit their friends to join them through the Story Mode. The cooperative modes are quite interesting
and can get to be very crowded and very confusing at times. Also, players can play over the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection if they feel the
urge, but it will probably be unnecessary because it offers exactly what is already offered offline.
Overall, the game offers a lot of the elements gamers look for in a game, good graphics, challenging puzzles, multiplayer and even
online modes. The only problem with the game is that there are chances of the game becoming repetitive and multiplayer can get to be
quite difficult and confusing at times. As a puzzle game, “Octomania” is just original enough to be engaging and challenging to many
gamers. Because each character has their own story to play through and terrible voice track to laugh at, the game ensures that players
to play it over and over again. Also, with a $20 price tag on its head, there are very few games that can compete with its price compared
to what actually comes in the package.
For those that are serious about puzzle games and are looking for something that is new and challenging, “Octomania” is definitely a
game worth checking out. However, for those that have an issue with cute anime characters, bad voice acting and repetitious music,
this game should not be given a second glance.
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